News & Events

Employment at historic level

Record numbers of people in Scotland are employed, the gender
gap has narrowed and more young people have jobs.

In 2017, 2,618,100 people were in employment and the employment
rate was 74.3%, with both the number and rate being the highest on
record.

The Regional Employment Patterns publication, based on the
Annual Population Survey 2017 (January to December) revealed that
Scotland has also narrowed the gender employment gap and increased
youth employment.

The publication says:

The gender employment gap - the difference in male and female
employment rates - has decreased from 10.6 percentage points in
2007 to 6.9 percentage points in 2017

The employment rate for people aged 16 to 24 increased to 59.4%
over the past year

the disability employment gap was 35.8 percentage points, a
decrease from 37.4 percentage points in 2016.

Employability Minister Jamie Hepburn said:

"This is an historic record for employment in Scotland,
demonstrating both the strength of our economy and labour market
and that the actions we are taking to grow Scotland's economy are
delivering results. Closing the gender gap is a priority for the
Scottish Government and key to achieving inclusive economic growth.
We are addressing this through several routs, including expanding
childcare provision, promoting flexible working and a Scottish
living wage, addressing pregnancy and maternity discrimination and
improving women's representation in senior management and
boards.

"We are committed to helping disabled people reach their full
potential, including having fair and sustainable jobs. I am
committed to reducing the disability employment gap by more than
half and the latest figures are encouraging and show we are heading
in the right direction."